


Spectre Status: Sophomore

by arlath (toddleston)



Series: Spectre Status [1]
Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Other, incredibly crack i just kind of wrote this on a whim i hope it goes well
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-20
Updated: 2015-09-01
Packaged: 2018-04-16 08:09:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4617909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/toddleston/pseuds/arlath
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shepard goes to college and things go horribly, horribly wrong.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Transfer Student

"I see, so your name is-"

"Shepard. Please, just call me... Shepard," The red head transfer student smiled weakly.

"Alright,  _Shepard,_ " The guidance counselor flipped through the file on her desk and typed a few more things into her computer, "According to our records, you're going to be in our Spectre program. Congratulations, young lady-"

_type type type_

"-aaaaaand you're all set!"

_whiiiiiiiir-click-whiiiiiir-click-whiiiiiiiiiiir-click-whiiiiiiiir_

With a flourish, the lady picked up the freshly printed pages, bundled them all together, stapled them, and handed them to Shepard. They were still warm as Shepard flipped through the pages, following the information as the counselor rattled them off:

"So, Shepard. Spectre status. You'll be in Normandy Hall. Something different about Normandy is that you have  _suites_ that house up to eight people instead of just plain old rooms. A living area is in the middle, a restroom is off to the side, and each resident has their own room - it's like a huge apartment. You'll be with Ashley Williams, Elizabeth Ingridson, Jennifer Nought, Kasumi Goto, Liara T'Soni, and Tali Rayya. There'll be one empty room but if another transfer student comes in, maybe you'll get a new friend," The counselor grinned, taking a break and a breath before continuing on, "Now, in the Spectre program you'll have full access to all buildings and resources. Consider it incentive for that big brain and fantastic physique of yours. And once you figure out what you want to major in, let us know. Spectre students are lucky in that aspect, they get to have the world at their fingertips because they can. I mean, of course, with the additional duties of attending the occasional meeting and reporting any and all unusual behavior. As a Spectre student, you are in charge of the well-being of the entire student body because you represent the best of the student body... There's not much more I can tell you. Any questions?"

"Why is your honors program called the  _Spectre_ program?" Shepard asked, raising a single eyebrow. She found the name a tad pretentious. It was just a program for those who passed physical exams and had a higher GPA.

_Don't they have their own security force?_

"Well, we believe that students enforcing and exhibiting exceptional behavior will help motivate students to act the same way. I mean, let's be honest, everyone acts good in front of C-Sec-"

"C-Sec?"

"College Security. Or Citadel Security. They both begin with C - so you can pick and choose," The guidance counselor elaborate, "What I'm trying to say is that Spectre students get everything in exchange for virtually no monetary value. We just ask that Spectre students rise above typical college shenanigans."

The guidance counselor smiled widely.

"Besides, Citadel College is a prestigious school with exceptional students. There'll really be nothing to do as a Spectre. Just enjoy yourself."

* * *

 

Shepard walked through the Citadel campus donning only a backpack, a suitcase, and clutching the papers the guidance counselor had given her. She used the papers to shield her eyes as she squinted towards the sky.

It was a bright blue and there were clouds spattered evenly across the sky.

"It looks fake..." Shepard murmured to herself, shifting the backpack on her shoulders.

There was a moderate flow of a smattering of people of different ethnic backgrounds walking on the paved walkways and cutting across the grass and sitting underneath the trees and throwing frisbees and footballs around.

Shepard passed by an overzealous student reporter with muted brown skin and cropped, black hair - "Khalisah Bint Sinan al-Jilani, Westerlund News! It is a beautiful day today, as you can see-"

_pleasedontlookatmepleasedontlookatmepleasedont-_

"-and it looks like we have a new student! Excuse me! Miss!" Khalisah clasped a hand on Shepard's shoulder, forbidding her to leave from the gaze of the camera.

_Shit._

"What is your name, Miss...?" Khalisah held a microphone up to Shepard's lips. Shepard eyes the blinking red dot with frustration.

"Shepard."

"What do you think of Citadel, Shepard?" The microphone was thrust under her nose once more.

"Good enough, I guess," Shepard forced a smile before shoving Khalisah's hand off her shoulder and continuing the trek to Normandy Hall.

"Well... There you go! Citadel is still g-o-o-d  _good_!"

The news reporter's voice faded and Shepard found herself breathing a sigh of relief. There was too much on her mind to deal with fake reporters. She lightly massaged the scowl off of her face as she approached a smattering of trees that hid Normandy Hall from view.

It was one of the smaller halls, though it had bigger rooms. It was also one of the more difficult halls to find, seeing as it was situated and angled behind a hedge of trees.

If you weren't looking for it, you wouldn't find it.

There were a few guys lounging in the lobby area, tossing a basketball around.

"I'm just saying - Canada's beautiful this time of year. I hate missing the trees and the smell of fresh syrup," A tall, tanned guy with stark black hair and a soft yet sturdy voice laughed. He was reclining in an armchair at the end of a coffee table. He tossed the ball to a guy dressed in grey and blue who caught it with ease. That guy ran his free hand through his hair and laughed.

"Canada this, Canada that! We get it, Kaidan - you're sorry, eh?" His voice wasn't particularly low, but it felt deep. More resonance than pitch. He threw it as hard as he could to probably the biggest guy of them all, who only had to hold out a single hand - and even then, it looked like he could crush it.

"Blue, take it easy on him. The Canadians got nothing on me and mi gente!" The hispanic behemoth chuckled, spinning the basketball on a single finger.

"Just call me Garrus, James - you're killing me. I don't know who I am anymore," Garrus joked, adding a little melodrama to his statement.

"Bones, go long!" James bellowed, pulling his hand back and aiming it towards a very pasty white guy who recoiled at James - holding up the sofa's pillow.

"Very funny, Vega. Just remember that while you're out doing some harebrained scheme, I'm the one getting you out. Every. Single. Time," He warned.

"Joker, you seem to be forgetting that  _you're_ the one who almost always comes up with the harebrained scheme," Kaidan raised an eyebrow.

"Fair enough, Alenko," Joker shrugged.

James silently pointed a finger at a tall, serious-looking figure who was reading  _Leviathan_ by Thomas Hobbes. To Shepard's horror, he practically launched the basketball which sped towards him like a heat-seeking projectile.

However, the figure merely brought up an elbow to deflect it. It bounced from his bone to the wall and the one named Garrus reached out to grab it. The  _Leviathan_ reader simply turned a page in the book.

"Damn, Scales - How do you  _do_ that?" James whistled, clapping his approval.

"Observation. The sound of impending doom rushing towards my head," His very dark eyes looked up to meet Shepard's, who was now looking at him, "The sound of another person walking into the building."

"Hey, no way! Who's the new meat?" James called out towards Shepard who felt slightly flustered for being found out - though she had done nothing wrong.

"Vega - no patronizing people until you know that they're cool with it," The one named Kaidan warned, before getting up from the chair and walking towards Shepard, "Hey, you new here?"

"Yeah."

"Wait - please tell me you have more than  _that,_ " Garrus eyed the suitcase and backpack.

"No... I didn't have much to bring," Shepard answered truthfully.

"Damn. At least you'll have space in your room," Kaidan shrugged before offering a hand to Shepard, "My name's Kaidan. Kaidan Alenko."

Shepard shook it. They both had a strong grip which made Kaidan laugh.

"Firm grip, I like it."

"The name's Vakarian. Garrus Vakarian," Garrus also offered his hand.

"James Vega. You can call me whatever you like as long as I get to do the same," The hispanic smirked. His grip was considerably lighter than the other two, despite his arms probably being heavier than their combined weight.

"I'm Jeff. Everyone calls me Joker, so I'll probably answer to that. It's like this place has been conditioning me. Anyway - be gentle with me, I have arthritis," Joker loosely shook Shepard's hand.

"And that's-" Kaidan turned around to where the  _Leviathan_ reader was sitting but Shepard found that he was already passing her to leave through the door.

"Thane Krios. I'm sure it will be a pleasure to meet you but I am running late. Excuse me," He bowed his head slightly as he slung a duffel bag over his shoulder and headed out the door.

"That's Thane for you," Garrus shook his head, "The guy practices martial arts and kickboxing and all kinds of hand-to-hand combat stuff. I don't know why he busts himself over it though, the program isn't that good."

"What's your name?" Kaidan asked, a smile crinkling the corner of his eyes.

"Shepard."

"No first name?" James inquired.

"Just Shepard," She shrugged, shaking away red hair that threatened to fall into her eyes.

" _Just_ isn't a great name. You look like a Lola to me," James nodded.

"Well, now you're gonna be a Lola to Vega forever. Congratulations," Joker added, "He comes up with nicknames for everyone because the truth is too hard to handle."

"Bones - why you gotta wound me like that?" James held a hand to his heart in faux pain.

"The kid with arthritis hurting the ultimate jock? Yeah. Believable."

"Words, amigo. Words cut deep."

"Well, I'll see you around," Shepard smiled at the motley crew before walking towards her dorm. Where, at least to where it probably was.

"Yeah - nice to meet you, Shepard!" Kaidan held up a hand and smiled.

Shepard headed down the hallway with a smile on her face. That was... different. And warm. She was surprised by the warmth. Getting tossed from foster home to foster home left a certain chill.

She got to the end of the hallways and looked at the door. On it, a whiteboard hung crooked and a "N7" adorned the wood. She opened the door and found herself in a small hallway leading up to a round living area surrounded by rooms. It was... unusual compared to other dorms. Usually everything was a block with detention-like qualities. This place assaulted her with a myriad of sights and sensations.

"Check it out - the new roomie!" A dark-haired, darkly tanned girl smiled as she wrapped her hair up in a ponytail. She was leaning up against her doorframe, muscles defined through a pale pink muscle shirt and running shorts. Behind her, however, the entire room was pink and lace. Two contrasting personalities in one image.

"Damn, now I'll have to move all my shit back into  _my_ room," A girl sitting cross-legged on the table in the middle of the room moaned. She hopped down and jogged into one of the free rooms to take out some clothes and neglected items. Her pale skin was covered in tattoos and her head was completely clean-shaven. She wore a homemade crop top - a Metallica shirt cut up and stylized - and the shortest jean shorts in existence. She had combat boots with the laces dragging against the floor and about 11 piercings on her body and head that Shepard could see. The pierced and tatted girl threw her things into what seemed to be her room - the walls were covered with band posters and darts. Clothes were strewn about except for the places where there were stereo speakers. Those places looked like altars.

_She's certainly an interesting character,_ Shepard mused to herself.

"Hey there!" A Romani girl with dark, olive skin looked up from a pile of scraps and miscellaneous machinery. She wore a hoodie with a beautiful swirling pattern and bootcut jeans that nearly concealed a worn out pair of sneakers. Her voluminous dark hair was tied into a loose bun, "Welcome to Room 7. Excuse the mess."

"A Spectre. It's not every day we get one of those," A husky and sultry voice spoke from another doorway. She looked every bit professional - from the posture to the bun her hair was tightly wound in. The hair was... blue, however.

_So, she knows how to have fun but keeps it all business?_

"How did you know I was an honors student?" Shepard asked.

The blue-haired girl tapped a few things on the tablet she was holding before locking the screen and flashing a smile, "I like to know things."

"That's Liara. She knows everything about everyone. Or, at least she's getting there," A Japanese girl shrugged, as she passed Shepard. She donned a grey and black hoodie and leggings which led into flat-heeled, knee-high boots. She had already cleared half the room when she pulled out Shepard's wallet from her pocket, "But she could have just checked your student ID to find that out. No need to go sifting through the poor girl's dirt."

Shepard checked her pockets - pulling out a business card with a red rose on it instead of her wallet.

"At least I'm not a kleptomaniac," Liara rolled her eyes.

"Kasumi. Give back her wallet. Remember the deal?" Pink Muscle Shirt tilted her head to the side.

"Yeah, yeah. No stealing any of the roommate's things," Kasumi sighed, tossing the wallet back to Shepard. She walked into a room of an eclectic nature, there were a few statue busts, a few original paintings, and some vintage photographs. Shepard had a suspicion that those were not actually Kasumi's, "Anyway, I'm Kasumi Goto. You can call me Kasumi, Kas, Sumi, Goat - just don't call me late for dinner."

"Ha ha ha, that's hilarious. We've never heard that one before," Pink Muscle Shirt retorted sarcastically, "I'm Ashley. Ashley Williams. And you are...?"

"Just call me Shepard."

Liara frowned, "It says here your first name is-"

"Just Shepard, please," Shepard interrupted Liara's sentence and Liara only met her eyes before tapping something into her tablet.

"Of course. Shepard, it is," Liara smiled.

"The name's Tali Zorah Rayya," Swirling Hoodie spoke, before sneezing and wiping her nose with a tissue, "Excuse me... You can just call me Tali."

"Tali's a nymphomaniac!" Pierced and Tatted yelled from her room. The girls laughed and Tali hollered back-

"The term is  _hypochondriac,_ Jack. I'm pretty sure  _you're_ the nymphomaniac!"

"It wouldn't surprise me if she was  _necrophiliac,_ " Kasumi giggled.

"Any way to get it works for me," Jack gave an exaggerated wink and even Shepard had to laugh at the word play, "The name's Jack. Nobody calls me Jennifer, got it?" Jack glared at Shepard. It was a clear warning.

"Fair enough," Shepard shrugged, offering a smile.

"Welcome to N7, Spectre," Ashley strode up and offered a hand. Shepard shook it.

"N7? Spectre? What is up with the names here?" Shepard asked.

"I mean- it's cooler to be called a Spectre than an 'honors student'. And Spectres aren't just smart, they're like... physically excellent as well. They have a free ride here with everything available to them. It's pretty damn difficult to become one. Hell, even Liara's not Spectre status," Ashley explained.

"How many Spectre students are there?"

"You can just call 'em Spectres," Ashley smiled.

"Including you? Technically about ten on campus," Liara answered, not even looking at her tablet for the information, "In Normandy Hall, there's you. Saren Arterius was moved to another Hall this year... and Garrus Vakarian could qualify but he doesn't really find all the responsibility appealing."

"I met him in the lobby," Shepard commented absently.

"He has a fucking stick up that tight ass of his," Jack scoffed.

"Once you get to know him, he's not that bad," Tali objected.

"Sure. But I won't be getting to know him any time soon," Jack shrugged, falling back on to her bed.

"Oh, and one of our roommates is out fixing people's computers or something. She'll be back soon. Her name's Elizabeth, but she goes by EDI. Her initials make it up, it's kinda cute," Kasumi smiled.

"You should put your things where you want them - dinner's gonna be soon," Liara informed Shepard. Shepard nodded and picked the free room that wasn't immediately near the restroom.

It was bland. The walls were an off-white and all the furniture was manufactured wood. She had a bed, a desk, a wardrobe, a dresser, and a chair. She also had a window that looked out into a forest that was turning gold and red.

_The view isn't so bad,_ Shepard reasoned as she shrugged off her bags onto the bed. She sat on the edge and let out a sigh.

_I wonder if I'll get through the next three years... Hell.. I wonder if I'll make it through this year._


	2. A Few Forced Smiles (Thane)

The sky looked fake, the breeze felt real, and Thane could breathe.

At least for now.

Thane took a deep breath feeling the cold air dance through his corrupted lungs. As far as he knew, only two people here were aware of his condition. That was fine by him.

The leaves on the trees were matured to their limit. Soon they'd burn into reds the color of her hair. A vivid shade. A shade of fire and redemption and passion. A shade that demanded respect and allegiance and attention.

He rubbed his eyes, blocking out the thoughts.

Her hair was none of those things. That description was a culmination of her hair and her eyes and the way her mouth rested on her face and her erect posture and subtle presence.

Even so, she may not have been all those things but that's how he chose to remember her.

 _If I must remember people forever,_ Thane had promised himself once,  _I will remember them poetically._

Thane had arrived at the gym while Mr. Dewitt was locking the doors.

"Ah, Krios! Here for training?" The Janitor smiled at Thane. Thane smiled back and stuffed his hands in his pockets before shrugging, "Looks like all the other kids are in the dining hall. Sure you're not hungry?"

"I put a few protein bars in my bag,"Thane failed to add that that had occurred a few weeks ago and they had all disappeared into the system of a certain James Vega, "But you go on ahead. I'd hate to make you miss a meal." _  
_

"You can't use the gym without a faculty member present, Thane. You know the rules," Mr. DeWitt lowered his gaze, his tone of sincerity with a twinge of seriousness added, "It's about your safety."

"Okay, Mr. DeWitt. I'll just go back to my dorm and eat with my roommates," Thane took a step back, taking out his hand to wave to the janitor, "Thank you for always looking out for me. I'll see you later." He turned around and turned the corner until he knew he was out of sight. Then he glanced over the same corner and watched Mr. DeWitt disappear farther onto campus.

When he was certain the janitor was long gone, Thane hurried over to the doors and kneeled in front of the locks. He pulled out a few bobby pins and messed around a little before he felt the lock release. He pushed open the door and closed it again, locking it behind him. 

He took off his duffel bag and prepared to train.

* * *

 

He had only gotten about ten minutes of kickboxing in before Mr. DeWitt put a hand on his shoulder.

It had been seven minutes since Mr. DeWitt had entered.

"I know how important this is to you, Thane. But you can't expect to live by not eating and working your own bones off," Mr. DeWitt whispered, his grip tightening on Thane's shoulder.

Thane was still and only held out his hand to steady the beaten, swinging bag. It was quiet for a few moments before Thane turned with the smallest of smiles.

"Of course, Mr. DeWitt. I'll go eat."

"Come eat with me. I cooked too much for myself, anyway," Mr. DeWitt shrugged.

* * *

 

Mr. DeWitt had not cooked too much for himself.

Thane didn't mention that.

Mr. DeWitt barely ate and shoveled food from his plate to Thane's.

Thane retorted once. Twice. Then ate it out of respect.

Mr. DeWitt put the remaining food in a plastic container.

Thane took it and promised to eat it. _  
_

Mr. DeWitt sighed,  _I should've married when I was young, Thane. I'm too old for anyone now, haha._

Thane didn't say he knew about the marriage, the miscarriages, the military.

Mr. DeWitt absently reached for the necklace with two rings on it.

 _Thank you,_ Thane said, before heading out the door.

He breathed in the autumn air. The sun peeked over the horizon, ready to vanish forever.

 _I should head back before it does.._  Thane thought before shoving his hands into his pockets.

Thane admired Mr. DeWitt. Thane admired that even though Mr. DeWitt had gone through war, love, death, and life taken too soon- He still kept going. If he was a drunk at night, but kept up appearances for the sake of other's well-beings... It wasn't healthy but it was admirable.

Thane wished he had that strength. To face his problems and the consequences.

_I hide. I become invisible. I push the thoughts away so they cannot drown me._

The sunset was the color of her eyes...

Thane took his fingers and dug them into his forearm.

_I can't._

He took off in a run. A moderate pace would have gotten him to Normandy Hall in 8 minutes.

He was there in 5.

A sweat was starting to poke out of his pores when he got to the building. His palm met the brick rather violently as he tried to steady himself. It was hard to breathe. Thane brought his hands to his chest and began to massage.

_"It's getting worse."_

_"Of course it is, Thane. It's a debilitating disease."_

_The sunset colored eyes rolled in annoyance._

"Shit.." Thane coughed out. He was stumbling into the building and breathing heavily before he stopped in his tracks.

The redhead had entered through the door on the opposite side of the hall. It seemed like she had just finished exercising, her face was flushed and her posture rigid. She had a look of concern painted on her face. Like she actually... cared.

Thane cleared his throat and pretended he was stretching. He felt like a fool.

"So you... work out, too?"

_What the hell was that, Krios..._

"Are you okay?" She asked, taking a step forward. Something about her made him want to tell her. But he couldn't.

"Of course. Might have... overworked myself," Thane shrugged. He was on fire. He needed to suffocate the flames.

"Are you sure?" 

_No._

"Of course," Thane nodded.

The redhead nodded once, a skeptical expression on her face - before going down the hallway on the right.

Thane turned left.

When he arrived at his door, his hands were shaking. He fumbled with the key until it clicked in the lock and he could open the door. Alenko, Vega, and Vakarian were sitting around the table in the middle of the round room - laughing about something he hadn't heard.

" _Amigo,_ you might work out more than I do and that's saying something," Vega noted Thane's entrance, chugging a bottle of water.

"Kaidan - I need you to help me work out this paper in Biology," Thane said, trying his hardest to hide the strain in his voice.

Kaidan looked confused for a moment before coming to a realization. His expression changed in a split-second from worry to feigned exasperation.

"Damn, I forgot that existed. We'll be right back, guys. We need to be responsible for a change," Alenko got up from his seat, walking over to Thane.

Thane walked into his room, and dropped everything onto the floor. He leaned against the wall, above a trash can, as Kaidan closed the door.

Without a word, Kaidan swung a palm at Thane's back.

He kept hitting until Thane raised a hand and heaved as silently as he could into the trash can. Mucus and excess liquid from his lungs hit the plastic bag lining the can. Thane coughed until he felt like his throat was about to kill him before his lungs could.

He didn't notice Alenko go to Thane's desk and grab the medication and a bottle of water. He handed them to Thane, silently.

"Thank you," His voice sounded coarse as it travelled through his scarred throat. Most people thought his voice was a natural, gritty tone. It wasn't natural. He didn't even know what his voice was supposed to sound like.

"Isn't all this exercise and medication supposed to help?" Kaidan sighed.

"It's supposed to," Thane sounded a lot more nonchalant than he felt. He felt betrayed, in a sense. He wouldn't feel this way if the doctors told him he was going to die a lot earlier than most afflicted patients. He wouldn't feel this way if everyone didn't tell him that he should hold on to hope and that if he kept taking care of himself, he could live a longer life. Being promised things, being encourage, was toxic to him, as much as the disease in his lungs.

"You're gonna have to confide in others, Thane. I won't always be around and this whole  _mysterious_ persona isn't whatever you think it is," Kaidan's brow furrowed as he spoke.

"I can't allow the luxury of people caring for me," Thane replied. He had accepted that early on. He had to. The more people who cared for him, the more impact his illness had.  _And when it's all over... When I'm dead..._

"I'm not going to try to tell you how stupid that is. I've tried before," Kaidan rolled his eyes, before sighing and running a hand through his hair, "You give me migraines."

"Those are naturally occurring."

"You make them worse."

"Thank you, Kaidan. Truly," Thane spoke with the utmost sincerity and offered a small smile.

Kaidan only shook his head. He went to the door, but before opening it, he turned to look at Thane.

"Don't kill yourself before your time."

Kaidan left, the sun dipped below the horizon, and Thane was left alone in his unlit room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was a little Bioshock reference thrown in there, not a character originally from the ME series!   
>  This work is on hiatus as I work on some other fics. Not abandoned!


End file.
